Actor Hugh Grant will not be charged over claims he threw a tub of baked beans at a photographer, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) said.

The star will also not be prosecuted in connection with allegations that he kicked the same photographer.

The incidents were alleged to have taken place near Mr Grant's west London home in April.

Ian Whittaker said he was attempting to get pictures of Mr Grant's former partner Liz Hurley, who lives nearby.

Mr Grant, 46, was arrested over the assault allegation on 24 April and bailed until May.

But a CPS spokeswoman said that there was "insufficient evidence" to charge him over the kicking allegation.

"We have advised the police that there is insufficient evidence to charge Hugh Grant with any offence in relation to an allegation that he kicked a photographer," she said.

"This is because there were clear discrepancies between the accounts of independent witnesses and those of the photographers involved.

"In relation to a second allegation involving a take away food container, the CPS decided that a prosecution would not be in the public interest."

She added that "the minimal nature of the alleged assault and the lack of pre-meditation on the part of Mr Grant" were also among the reasons for the decision not to prosecute over the bean-throwing claim.